Miss Van + Bailarinas + Twinkles = Greatness

For all of those contemporary art lovers living in the NYC area: This is for you.

Miss Van will be having a solo exhibition entitled "Bailarinas" at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery! Starting today, May 26-June 25th, 2011, she will have an amazing display of her latest work that centers around the essence of ballerinas with a "Miss Van" twist. And from some of the sample pieces that I have seen; the exhibit looks amazing (below).


And not only will she be featuring her work in this exhibition, but she will also have a book signing event at the Cotton Candy Machine in Brooklyn, NY. The two books that she will be releasing entitled "Twinkles" and "Atame" are compositions of old pieces that were exhibited in galleries from years past (Atame) and new pieces of art that she has subjectively changed through her own creativity (Twinkles). To find out more about these events, click the colored words.


You know, news like this is just reconfirming why I need to relocate to an artsy/creative city where events like this occur, I mean these are one a kind events. And Miss Van has been around for over a decade now, and I am certain that this exhibition will be a must see. And as for the books, thank God for online shopping (lol).

Enjoy your week, everyone and be blessed! Peace ♥

The Nu Revolution is here

My girls are back; Les Nubians are officially back in full effect!!!

It has been over 5 years since these two Afropean sisters of Cameroonian and French decent have released an album. And I am so happy that their fans from all over the world will finally be able to hear some good music full of love, inspiration and positivity.

Today, I happened to run across their video for their latest single, Afrodance, off their new album entitled, Nu Revolution. I had previously heard the song a couple months ago and honestly forgot about it, but there is no way I can with this amazing video.

This song is simply about celebrating natural hair, in all forms. I also interpret it as a song that celebrates Black people and who we are, as well. I just love the positive message behind it, and the video is just amazing. I have always been in love with Les Nubians' style and beauty and this video really exemplifies that. The different hairstyles, the people of all different shades and tones, the videography and transitions...it is truly irresistible!

I hope you all sincerely enjoy this video and song as much as I do. Cop that album, and support good music by two beautiful sistas!

Have a happy Friday, and a happy Good Friday to all of those that celebrate Easter! I can't wait to make my basket! lol Peace ♥

Les Nubians - Afrodance from Nice Dissolve on Vimeo.

Fafi meets CHANEL...

And what a union it was... I just saw that one of my favorite artist's, Fafi, joined forces with CHANEL this past Monday at the Chanel-Colette ephemeral boutique in Paris to customize some of their bags. And I know personally, that the price of a Chanel bag is equivalent to the down payment on a car, so buying one would be out of my league. And Chanel bags really aren't my style, but a Fafi-Chanel bag is. And the idea of combining art with fashion is what I love about this whole union; it looked as if the process was very fun and interesting watch.

How hot are these?

Enjoy your day, guys! Keep dreaming and believing! Peace ♥




Fafi.net

A new week has arrived...

Hey, guys!

I hope that everyone had an excellent weekend. Today has been very chill for me. Just sitting back, relaxing and meditating over my past week and preparing for Spring Break which I am very excited for. I cannot wait to go home and spend time with my family and friends, shop and just be in a familiar place.

Do you all have any special plans for the break? If not, live it up wherever you are and don't forget to always set aside some time each day for yourself; its a must!!!

The song that I am posting is a song that really helped me out through some tough times. And the lyrics speak for themselves....such a positive and uplifting song.

Have a great week, yall! Blessings and love! ♥

Locs of LOVE...

To all of those inspired by natural hair, that have locs or don't have either...Get a load of this.

Franchesca is a graphic desginer, blogger and comedian that has been sharing her loc journey through her youtube channel and blog for about 4 years now. Two days ago, marked 7 years since she has been growing her locs and 3 years since she has been doing video timelines of her hair/loc journey.

To me, this video shows ultimate beauty in natural hair at all stages. From the first stage of transitioning from a perm to going natural and dealing with that awkward stage of having natural hair and not really knowing what to do with it...all the way up to being comfortable enough with your natural hair to where you start experimenting with different styles etc...



Franchesca does a full timeline in this video, including pictures from her childhood all the way up to now (she is 27) of how her hair has changed and grew tremendously since she has went natural and how her hair has changed since she started growing her locs. This video has really inspired me, and I am so happy that she has basically shared her life with us in this video to show the beauty of hair and all of its wonders. She is such a beautiful woman and I am sure that she will inspire many of you.

I hope you all are having a great weekend, remember to smile and spread love!

Peace ♥



Franchesca's youtube channel & website

Happy Valentine's Day!!!!

Well, today is that special day for those to buy gifts for their loved ones and express all of the love that they have for that certain someone in many ways. So to all my people who have a Valentine's to those who are riding this day out solo style, Happy Valentine's Day!

This is my special gift from me to you...This magazine cover will always resonate in my mind when I think about love and passion. I remember when I was a little girl and this magazine came out; I used to just stare at the cover not knowing what was going on exactly, but knowing that there was some kind of love between the two. So I guess you could say that this was one of my first interactions with understanding what love was; through an expression within a picture. And although Bobby and Whitney are not together anymore, these two used to ride for each other no matter what. And that's what love is all about.

And the song that I have posted is self-explanatory; it very fitting for the holiday!
Remember to spread love in any kind of way today. Peace, yall! ♥

"She's been gone, but it hasn't been too long..."

When it comes to Ms. Erykah Badu, I think we all know that the word unpredictable comes to mind. When it comes to her music, style and fashion, videos etc...She always seems to do what people least expect or just totally blow our mind away. Well, I am here to say that she has done it again.

The video for her second single, "Gone Baby, Don't Be Long", was released yesterday and people are already in love with it. It was directed by the incredible artist within his own right, Flying Lotus. And let me tell you, Fly Lo. and Badu have really out done themselves with this video.

In my opinion, the video reminds me of someone traveling through a music world in outerspace. It's kind of hard to explain, because to me its one of those simply complex videos...but to me that is the beauty of Badu's work and mind.

New Amerykah Part Two (Return of The Ankh) was released last March and we have not received and new single or video from Badu since then, so it is good to see that she has not forgotten about her fans who have been wanting for a new single and video from her for a while now.

I am pretty sure that you all will enjoy this video, and the ending is my favorite part. Those familiar with her album will know why.
One more day until the weekend, be blessed yall....
Peace ♥

Erykah Badu - Gone Baby, Don't be Long from beeple on Vimeo.

E. Badu's twitter and website

I TOTAL-ly miss the 90s!

Since this past summer, I have fallen in love with the 90s R&B group Total. When I was younger, I always loved their music. But now through research and just looking back on the past and really missing good and authentic R&B, I have found a whole new appreciation for these ladies.

Kima, Keisha & Pam were three of the most swagged out women of the 90s R&B era. I mean, even if they were not singing and were only acting as a cameo in a Biggie or Lil' Kim video, these girls stood out. And on top of that, they had three of the most eclectic voices of an R&B group during this time....But the way they managed to sync them together and sound so good is what I loved the most about them. So my appreciation for them and their talent has really grown as of recently. And I just thought that I would share this with you all, especially for my people who loved the 90s that can feel where I am coming from.

The video that I am posting is of them performing back in 1995 with Puff Daddy and an interview after the show from a Video Music Box special. I hope you all enjoy this rare, yet excellent footage of these, then young ladies. It's safe to say that I really miss Total and this culture of music.

Who was your favorite group or artist of this decade? Peace ♥



For more R&B and Hip Hop videos of the 90s, check out Egoggles's youtube channel.